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The Prestwick Golf Club is a classic links course, built between the
beach and the grassland further inland. The course has several large sized
mounds where the flat sand dunes have been transformed into hills due
to the strong winds that have passed over the regions for hundreds and
thousands of years. Although there are some blind holes, nearly all of
them are very impressive and beautifully designed. Players will never
succumb to boredness here since each hole is unique in its own way. The
first British Open was held at Prestwick GC in 1860 and has hosted it
24 more times until 1925.
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The opening hole is a straight and short par four nicknamed the “Railway
hole”. A railway track runs vertically down the right-hand side of the
hole, passing both the tee area and the green. The trains run every 10
minutes with a station nearby the tee ground. If players hit the ball
too far to the right, there is a risk that the ball will hit a passing
train. The further away the tee shot, the narrower the landing area becomes,
so an iron or a fairway wood is a good choice off the tee. The best 500
holes in the world in the year of 2000 (latest edition) by GOLF Magazine.
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This part 5 is a signature hole nicknamed as the “Cardinal”. There is
a sharp dogleg to the right with the winding creek called the Pow Burn.
The Pow Burn is a hazardous OB area that runs along the right side of
the hole. Players will need to layup short of the two bunkers that are
strategically placed around 300 yards from the tee. There is also another
pot bunker on the left hand side of the fairway that is placed 290 yards
away from the tee. These bunkers should be avoided at all the costs. The
second shot will be blind and will require the ball of fly over a vast
bunker called the “Cardinal”. The green is long horizontally with a sharp
slope at the end. This hole is also the best 500 holes in the world in
the year of 2000 (latest edition) by GOLF Magazine.
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This next hole is a par 4 with a slight dogleg to the right. The Pow Burn
creek returns as it runs along the fairway and the green. Therefore, accuracy
on the tee and second shots are required as the fairway slopes from left
to right towards the Pow Burn. There are three bunkers positioned on the
left and right side of the fairways that players should look out for during
their tee shot. There is a bunker on the left that protects the green. It
will be difficult to save par if the ball lands in this bunker as the green
slopes from back left to front right. |
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This hole is known as the world famous blind par 3. Players must hit over
a huge sand dune while not being able to see the position of the green.
However, there are pole marks on the sand dune that will guide players as
to the direction of the hole. Players must look out for their tee color’s
pole mark in order to have their ball land safely on the green. There are
five bunkers on the right and a bunker on the front left of the green. The
prevailing winds will push the ball towards the five bunkers on the right;
therefore players will need both accuracy and luck at this hole. Players
should also not forget ring the bell on completion to let those behind know
it’s safe to tee off! |
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This par 4 is a straight and difficult hole. Players should avoid the blind
pot bunker that is placed 265 yards away from the tee. The landing area
off the tee is highly undulated and shaped like numerous weaves. This leaves
players a trick stance, even from the center of the fairway, as the only
option left is to hit the long second shot from various lines, which can
be very challengeing. The green is horizontally long and the front half
slopes severely from back to front. |
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The 15th hole consists of a slight dogleg to the left. The tee shot is blind
over a humungous mound. Furthermore, there are two bunkers on the left side
of the fairway that will come into play, making the tee shot demanding.
From the second shot area, players won’t see the bottom of the flag due
to a large mound in front of the ball. Finally, the green is small and slops
severely from left to right. |
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Another signature hole called the “Alps”. This hole is almost straight
and slightly uphill. The narrow fairway requires an accurate tee shot
in order to give players the best chance of reaching the green in two
shots. The second shot will be completely blind and players will need
to ask a caddie or their playing partners the direction they should hit
towards. The blind approach to the green offers players the mystery and
charm of the course. If players hit short of the green, the famous Sahara
bunker will await their balls arrival.
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Preswick Golf Club is a 45-minute drive away from the
city of Glasgow in Scotland. It is also a 5-minute walk from Parkston
hotel and Golf View Hotel. If players do decide to stay in the area, there
is also the Royal Troon GC, which is a 10-minute drive, and a Western
Gales GC, which is a 14-minute drive.
The Top 100 Golf Courses of the World ( top100golfcourses.co.uk)
ranks Preswick Golf Club as the 14th best course in all of Scotland and
the 34th best course in all of United Kingdom in 2015. As of 2008, United
Kingdom as a whole has 2752 courses, in which 580 of them are in the region
of Scotland.
Old Tom Morris is a famous Scottish professional golfer, designer, and
pioneer. Other golf courses designed by him are: Carnoustie GC, Muafield
GC, Dunbar GC, Crail GC, Cruden Bay GC, Moray GC, St Andrews Links (New
Course) ,Royal Dornoc GC (Struie Course), Narin GC, Kinghorn GC, Machrihanish
GC, Lundin GC, Royal County Down GC and Anstruther GC.
Prestwick Golf Club was founded in 1851 by a group of 57 golfers who
met at the Red Lion Inn, a 6-minute walk form Prestwick GC, a few years
after the railway had opened up between Glasgow and Ayrshire. It was in
the Red Lion Inn again that the Open Championship was conceived. Used
in 1860 as the clubhouse for the Prestwick links, it was from here that
the historic eight would have made that famous march before each striking
a ball in turn and thus beginning a championship which has become one
of the leading events in the world’s sporting calendar.
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